Chapter 18

EP.18 We Seol-a, That Day's Memory

We Seol-a, That Day's Memory.

We Seol-a sometimes has strange dreams, like today.

On a moonless night, she dreams of herself swinging a sword.

We Seol-a thought these dreams were nightmares.

In the dream, too many people die from the sword she wields, and she seems unaffected by it.

She is terrified to see people filled with anger and rage, but the dream version of herself doesn't seem to care.

It's a beautiful sword.

It resembles the one her grandfather used to show her.

Her grandfather disliked her handling swords. Once, she tried to imitate him in front of him to get praise and got a severe scolding.

That day, her grandfather cried.

It was the first time she saw him cry.

Seeing this, she promised never to play with swords again.

Only then did her grandfather stop crying.

Even though he stopped crying, her grandfather always seemed to be crying.

Others might describe him as kind or gentle, but she knew the truth.

Her grandfather always seemed to be crying.

He always tells her he feels sorry. What could he be so sorry about? Seol-a is happy.

Is it like when my sisters say, "It's okay because you're still young"? I don't want to be young...

In the dream, she is taller. Her hair is much longer.

Unlike her black hair, the hair in the dream is white.

Her face is beautiful.

Her sisters tell her she is pretty, but the dream version of herself is exceptionally beautiful.

Can I become like that?

Suddenly, she thought of Young Master.

"Young Master never tells me I'm pretty..."

After tying my hair, I went to show Young Master, and he said I was pretty, but he quickly avoided my eyes.

Does Young Master think I'm not pretty...?

Young Master is a kind person.

He was the first friend of my age I met, living only with my grandfather.

At first, he was a friend, but Grandfather said I should call him Young Master now.

I wasn't allowed to call him a friend, or I would be scolded...

So, he's Young Master.

At first, Young Master looked scary, but when I mustered the courage to talk to him, he turned out to be a good person.

He ate my potatoes and said they were delicious, and he even gave me sweets. I was surprised by the sweets.

Sweets were much tastier than potatoes. I stopped eating potatoes after that.

Young Master gives me sweets every day.

He says he doesn't like sweets himself, but when I asked my sisters, they said he does like sweets.

They said he used to eat them every day before I came. Is he lying to me now?

He seems to like dumplings...

Yesterday, he brought sweets and dumplings. I saw him smile for the first time in a while.

Seeing Young Master smile made my heart ache for some reason.

When I told Grandfather, he looked at Young Master with a scary expression. It was the first time I saw him look like that.

Yesterday, Young Master said I was getting rounder from eating snacks and laughed.

...I'll stop eating sweets.

"...No, I won't stop. I'll just eat two."

Sometimes, Young Master looks at me with the same expression as Grandfather.

The first time I saw him on the street.

When big dogs appeared while we were in the carriage.

His eyes looked the same as Grandfather's.

Why? I'm happy.

Does Young Master or Grandfather think I'm unhappy?

I don't know.

I keep having these dreams, but today's nightmare was different. Usually, I wake up around this point, but this time, I found myself in a new place.

The nightmare continued, and I entered a house.

Inside, there were many angry people like those I fought earlier.

I fought again.

My whole body was covered in blood. I seemed to be badly injured. Was I not in pain?

I must have been very strong. Despite many people attacking me, I defeated them all and moved forward.

It felt like one of the stories Grandfather tells me at bedtime. In his stories, Grandfather is always the strongest.

He talks about defeating hundreds of bad guys... I thought it was a lie, but was it real?

I kept moving forward and met an uncle.

He looked kind, but there was something scary about him.

"Why did you do that?"

I said in the dream. My voice was as beautiful as my face. Could I really grow up to be like that...?

The kind-looking but scary uncle replied.

"Seol-a... You came to save me..."

"Shut up, don't call me with your dirty mouth. Tell me, when did it start?"

"What...?"

"I know everything, so don't try to lie. I'm holding back from splitting you in half. Answer me."

S-so scary...!

He looks so beautiful but speaks so terrifyingly... I shouldn't speak like that when I grow up.

Was it because of what I said? The kind-looking but scary uncle's face changed.

He became a truly scary uncle...!

"Ah, did you find out? It's a shame, I was so close."

"You...!"

"It's okay. This is enough."

Crunch, crunch—

Something strange happened to the scary uncle. His body changing was so disgusting.

"It's too late, Seol-a. You should have noticed earlier."

The uncle's body grew larger. I ran towards him, ready to fight.

I had the same beautiful sword as before, but it didn't work on him.

"What...!"

I was shocked. Then something shot out from his body...!

Eek!

It pierced my body...!! Something sharp pierced through me.

Unlike his quick movements earlier, I couldn't dodge his attack.

The uncle threw me away. I flew and hit the wall.

It was too scary. I didn't want to see it and wanted to wake up from the dream.

Wake up...! I don't want to see this... Please...!!

Why am I having such a scary dream? It was so terrifying.

In the dream, the me with the pierced body was slowly dying.

I wanted to call for Grandfather. Maybe he could save me. He is strong.

Then, the dream version of me said something.

What did she say?

"...No."

It was too soft to hear.

The scary uncle approached. What should I do? How should I react...?

The scary uncle came in front of me and said,

"Pretty stupid, huh? Both you and that guy. Especially that guy, he's the biggest fool, trying to protect someone with just a little strength."

I cried at his words.

Who is he talking about? Who is he referring to? I hate not being able to do anything in my own dream.

The uncle tried to do something to me again. It was like the knife that pierced me earlier.

"If you see him, tell him you lived a trashy life."

"Sorry... Sorry."

I apologized, but it didn't seem to be to the uncle.

To whom...?

Then, the uncle swung the sharp object at me.

I closed my eyes tightly, not wanting to see.

"Ah!"

Fortunately, I woke up from the dream.

My back was damp with sweat.

Looking to the side, Grandfather's bed was empty. He must have gone to work already.

The dream was too scary. It felt like a real experience, and I didn't want to be alone.

That's why...

...I suddenly wanted to see Young Master.

******************

The next day after visiting Haowen.

I thought I should exercise my legs a bit since I ate too many dumplings.

"Jueyeop here. I request a sparring match with a member of the main family."

But who is this guy...?

As soon as I opened the door, a strange guy started talking.

He seemed to be around my age, with a sharp jawline and the distinctive impudent eyes of the Gu family.

The most annoying thing was that he was extremely handsome. His surname being Gu, his eyes and pupils being red, all seemed to prove he was a member of the Gu family.

At least, he wasn't a direct descendant of the family head.

For a moment, I thought he might be a hidden son of my father, but I didn't know of any.

"Who are you?"

So, who is he? His face seemed familiar, but I couldn't remember.

Seeing my confusion, the guy, Jueyeop or Jueyeop, frowned slightly.

Did I make a mistake? But I really don't know...

My confusion was resolved by the sudden appearance of Elder Yi.

"Isn't it Jueyeop? Why are you here?"

Why are you here, old man...?

Elder Yi has been showing up frequently lately, and I wanted to ask him about it, but I knew he wouldn't listen, so I didn't bother.

Jueyeop bowed to Elder Yi.

"I greet you, Elder Yi."

"Ah, it's been a while, about a year, right?"

"Have you been well?"

"Always well, hahaha! How have you been?"

"...Don't suddenly start chatting in my room."

So, who is he?

Seeing my puzzled expression, Elder Yi looked at me with a disappointed look.

"Yangcheon, don't you recognize him?"

"Already, this is the third time I'm confused."

"What can I do? Your memory is worse than a fish's."

Why is this old man picking a fight with me this early in the morning...?

"Jueyeop, isn't he Elder Yi's grandson?"

Hearing Elder Yi, I looked at Jueyeop. Elder Yi...

'That strict and annoying old man.'

Tai Ling Reojian (兌零熱劍) Gu Changjun. My great-uncle to my father, and my great-granduncle to me.

He wasn't someone I had good feelings about.

Elder Yi's sudden visit is a bit burdensome, but I'm grateful to him for not giving up on me.

However, Elder Yi is different.

There's a lot to say, but he's someone I don't want to remember.

"Anyway, you're Elder Yi's grandson?"

"Have we met a few times and you don't remember?"

Even with that, it was a distant memory. He seemed to remember me, but I didn't.

Jueyeop's lips trembled, seemingly upset.

Seeing this, I quickly apologized.

"No, I'm sorry..."

"That's understandable. After such a harsh treatment, it's natural to want to forget out of embarrassment."

What, this guy?

"But, hearing that you still look the same after all these years, I came to see, but you're still disappointing."

"Elder Yi."

"...Why are you doing this?"

"This is Elder Yi's grandson, it's the same! Exactly."

"..."

Elder Yi didn't answer, but his expression showed deep agreement.

He was exactly like Elder Yi in my memory. No matter what I said, he didn't seem to care much.

"Phew, tormenting the weak isn't in my nature, but this is unavoidable... I request a sparring match with a member of the main family again..."

"Young Master...!!"

Interrupting Jueyeop was We Seol-a.

"Insane."

Seol-a was somehow half-soaked. Her skin was visible through the wet clothes.

Whatever the rush, she even came barefoot without shoes.

I immediately grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around Seol-a.

"What are you doing! What if someone sees?"

"Young Master! I'm here... I had a dream..."

"Mr. Il."

Jueyeop interrupted Seol-a, who was about to speak. When I shifted my gaze to Jueyeop, his eyes were fixed on Seol-a.

I noticed Jueyeop's trembling pupils and slightly red face.

"Who is this person?"

...Look at this guy?